Our Shared Shelf discussion

The Cuckoo's Calling
Robert Galbraith

Dear readers in the ‘Our Shared Shelf’ Book Club,

I personally think THE CUCKOO'S CALLING should be on the list of books we read because of one particular character that has to deal with a lot of judgemental opinions purely because she’s a woman. The book is written by author J.K. Rowling, under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith.

The character I’m talking about is called Robin Ellacott. She’s an intelligent woman with a heart made of gold. Robin’s kind to everyone she meets and treats everyone with love and respect. The book’s a crime novel (I’ll include the blurb for the book down below) but I am recommending this book because Robin is often seen as the weaker person by either Cormoran Strike or her fiancé Matthew Cunliffe. There’s a lot of moments where Cormoran wants Robin to do the less dangerous tasks because he’s afraid something will happen to her and she won’t be able to defend herself. Robin’s quite good at defending herself in any situation, which can be proven in the other books THE SILKWORM and CAREER OF EVIL.

While it may seem like a good thing that he’s worried about her, the problem is that he doesn’t feel worried when his male friends do more dangerous tasks for him. At times Strike even makes Robin go to places where he knows nothing bad will happen, for the sake of keeping her away from the things he believes she as a woman can’t handle. At one point Strike's very surprised that Robin's a great driver, because he assumes that most women can't drive very well. Don’t get me wrong, Cormoran Strike’s a great man, but he definitely needs to work on some things.

Robin’s fiancé is unfortunately much worse. As I said earlier, Robin’s a very intelligent and kind woman who is great at what she does. He likes to be in control in the relationship and earn the most money, be better than Robin at his job, and be independent. The moment Robin starts becoming better than him at everything and he understands that she’s more independent, he becomes jealous of her work relationship with Strike. He’s been described by J.K. Rowling as being a misognyst. He hates that women can be better than him, and that they don’t need to rely on him as a man.

Even though I’m doing an awful job of describing these two characters and the book, there are in my opinion clear moments where one could easily say ‘Yes, that is precisely why we need feminism’. There are other characters as well in the book that could be discussed and I really do think this book club would benefit from reading the book and talking about those clear cases I have described.

Here’s the blurb for THE CUCKOO’S CALLING:

'When a troubled model falls to her death from a snow-covered Mayfair balcony, it is assumed that she has committed suicide. However, her brother has his doubts, and calls in private investigator Cormoran Strike to look into the case.
Strike is a war veteran – wounded both physically and psychologically – and his life is in disarray. The case gives him a financial lifeline, but it comes at a personal cost: the more he delves into the young model’s complex world, the darker things get – and the closer he gets to terrible danger.'

Thank you for reading!

With lots of love and good wishes from,
Ardit Haliti x

P.S. Keep on being awesome readers!

Can we please read this Emma?

I have this book and it's been on my to read list for a bit! Woohoo!

Ashley wrote: "I have this book and it's been on my to read list for a bit! Woohoo!"

The book's absolutely incredible, I promise! And the series only gets better for each book you read. :) x

That's awesome! I may be bumping it up closer to the top of my to read pile. :)

If I'm not mistaken, this is a group about books that deal with feminist issues, mainly of essay, documentary or academic genre. "The cuckoo's calling" is a great book, but it's a mystery fiction novel; its plot is not about feminism.

Desiré wrote: "If I'm not mistaken, this is a group about books that deal with feminist issues, mainly of essay, documentary or academic genre. "The cuckoo's calling" is a great book, but it's a mystery fiction n..."

Desiré, I don't know whether Emma made this book club for the sake of reading books ONLY about feminism but that is why I created this thread. I think it would be a great idea to read a novel such as THE CUCKOO'S CALLING for the sake of discussing the sexism that appears in the book and why we need equality/feminism. I am a proud feminist and there have been times in the book where I've been ANGRY over how they've treated Robin, how they've completely dismissed her abilities as a human being just because she's a woman! Women are amazing and it is time the whole world sees it. :)

Anyway, this is why I suggested this book. I hope people read it some day! I'm a big fan of the series.

PS. I HIGHLY and STRONGLY recommend 'THE CASUAL VACANCY' just as much!

Ardit wrote: "PS. I HIGHLY and STRONGLY recommend 'THE CASUAL VACANCY' just as much!"

I think you've made extremely valid points Ardit!

Robin is a fantastic character and I got so frustrated reading how people treated her as if she didn't know what she was doing. Loved how she got her own back by being an accomplished bad ass and blowing all expectations people had away! Hope you've read the two follow-on Robert Galbraith books, Robin gets better and better and has become one of my favourite female characters (up there with a vast HP cast!).

I think they should be advertised as the Robin Ellacott series and not the Cormoran Strike series although having read about sexism in publishing I'd imagine the powers that be would say they wouldn't sell as well. (well.... that's not possible considering their mighty creator). The Irish Times Women's Podcast covered this issue in September, worth a listen and subscribing to. They cover how men are more likely to be published than women, and how most reviews are written by men; https://soundcloud.com/irishtimes-wom...

JQ wrote: "Ardit wrote: "PS. I HIGHLY and STRONGLY recommend 'THE CASUAL VACANCY' just as much!"

I think you've made extremely valid points Ardit!

Robin is a fantastic character and I got so frustrated rea..."

Thank you, JQ! x

Yes, me too! It was incredibly frustrating to read at times. They kept assuming she'd be too weak to do things or just not do them properly because she's a woman. Absolutely! My favourite parts in all three books are always the scenes where she completely proves people wrong, and makes them go 'Oh, wait, she IS incredible. She CAN do things properly.. and even BETTER than expected!'.

I've read both The Silkworm and Career of Evil. I LOVED them both. The third one being my favourite. Which one's yours? x

I think that would be unfair, though, to Cormoran Strike. The book is written from TWO perspectives, Cormoran's and Robin's meaning the title of the book should be equal and therefore be name-less. I'm sure Jo would have been able to come up with a brilliant title.

You are right, unfortunately, about the whole publishing thing. Did you know Joanne Rowling was asked to come up with initials when she first got published, as they thought younger boys wouldn't read a book written by a female author? It's awful. Why should we have to live in a society where we are told boys don't prefer women's books when we should live in a society where we teach people of ALL ages that we're all equal, and that books can be enjoyed no matter who wrote the books? It is unfair, in my opinion, to tell authors such as J.K. Rowling that they should change their names in order for their books to gain any interest from the boys. That's not how we change the world. We change the world by teaching younger generations that we ALL matter, that we're ALL beautiful just the way we are and that we can grow up to do wonderful things if we simply believe in ourselves!

Yes! Agreed! It's an amazing book and portrays the need for feminism in a clear way. Love the book!

Ardit wrote: "PS. I HIGHLY and STRONGLY recommend 'THE CASUAL VACANCY' just as much!"

Omg yes, the casual vacancy is a great book as well! :]

This is a very interesting point you're making here! I first read The Cuckoo's Calling shortly after it was released, and although I probably did feel annoyed by the way Robin was treated, I do not remember feeling so - I think it didn't stick because it is something rather common, unfortunately. I do remember, however, rooting for her as I read the second book (I still haven't read Career of Evil) and by rooting for her I mean hoping she'd be more part of the action itself.

JQ wrote: "Ardit wrote: "PS. I HIGHLY and STRONGLY recommend 'THE CASUAL VACANCY' just as much!"

I think you've made extremely valid points Ardit!

Robin is a fantastic character and I got so frustrated rea..."

Oh my god, yessss
It's so sad that Joanne had to put her name as J.K. Rowling just to interest other readers. The is no reason for boys to read books written by women and vice versa

Ardit wrote: "The Cuckoo's Calling
Robert Galbraith

Dear readers in the ‘Our Shared Shelf’ Book Club,

I personally think THE CUCKOO'S CALLING should be on the list of books we r..."
I agree with you Ardit. The Cookoo's Calling may not be seen officially as a 'feminist book' but it highlights the everyday, insidious misogyny, that women face. The little pin pricks. The 'jokes' about women's driving...while openly condemning lands where women are not allowed to drive. It's not, for me, a problem that Strike, a large, strong person, wanting to protect Ellacott, smaller and slightly built, it's that he is patronizing her by taking away her choice, by thinking he knows better. Remember, he's the good guy & if he thinks that way, then that doesn't say much for the general male population.
I loved this book too!

Such an interesting perspective! I read this book a year or so ago and loved it, but never saw Robin from this point of view. I shall re-read with a fresh set of eyes!

I actually think the latest instalment, Career of Evil, would be a better choice as I feel that the theme of Robin being weak comes to a head in this book, although I guess you can't really have the 3rd book in a series as the book of the month.

I will be revisiting this once I have re-read with your comments in mind. Thank you for a refreshing perspective.

We should totally read this. When I reached the end of the book, I thought that my jaw was going to fall. :D

We should totally read this. When I reached the end of the book, I thought that my jaw was going to fall. :D

Ardit wrote: "JQ wrote: "Ardit wrote: "PS. I HIGHLY and STRONGLY recommend 'THE CASUAL VACANCY' just as much!"

I think you've made extremely valid points Ardit!

Robin is a fantastic character and I got so fru..."

I agree that it'd be unfair to Strike if it was named the Robin Ellacott series, felt bad after I wrote that. I'd be happy with equal naming rights for the series between both of them! My favourite of the series is A Career of Evil. I had to reread the first two when I finished it as didn't want to give up my time with the main characters. I loved how Robin really grew in confidence and how she was able to really flourish in the third one.

Knew that about JK alright, I also remember reading a book by Robin Hobbs who I thought was a man til I was halfway through and realised it wasn't. I thought she had to market herself as a man for the same reason but read an interview with Megan Ogden (RH's real name) and she had picked a deliberately androgynous name for her fantasy books as they differed from her previous books. In the same interview she said she picked a surname beginning with H so her books would be placed on the middle shelves in bookshops..... clever!

Ece wrote: "We should totally read this. When I reached the end of the book, I thought that my jaw was going to fall. :D"

Me too!!! No spoilers here..... but I cannot wait til the next instalment!

JK if you're reading this, I am trying my best to wait patiently for its release, but it's proving to be a big challenge.

:)

This book would actually be perfect for reading. The Cuckoo's calling, even though it is named after a man (Cormoran Strike #1), is based on a woman.

Just because it is not a feminist book, doesn't mean that we can't read it. Robin is a very funny young woman, who likes to find criminal cases and learn more about it, a job which a man would not prefer a woman to do. Proved by her fiance, Matthew, who never wanted her to work with Cormoran Strike in the first place.

<>Ardit wrote: "The Cuckoo's Calling
Robert Galbraith

Dear readers in the ‘Our Shared Shelf’ Book Club,

I personally think THE CUCKOO'S CALLING should be on the list of books we r..."

I read this when it first came out because I knew it was by Rowling. I enjoyed it very much & read the second book in the series & will soon start the third. I highly recommend them.

I completely agree! I love the Cuckoo's Calling. Robin's an awesome feminist character.

This has been added to the book list :) https://docs.google.com/document/d/1T...